Comparison of Adam and Eve narratives in Genesis and the Quran

Adam and Eve: Koran and Genesis

The story of Adam and Eve appear both in the Holy Quran and Bible but there are some significant differences. Even though the story is basically the same, the differences lie in the way it is told and the description assigned to each character. We find after our analysis that the story that appears in Koran is far stronger and more respectful to God and Adam and Eve than the version we find in Bible. Some of the main comparison points are discussed below

The role of Eve

In the story as it appears in Genesis, Eve is assigned all the blame. She is considered a weak person who is befooled by the serpent as she is tempted to fool Adam into eating the fruit. This is in one way highly degrading to all women because for ages, women have been accused of being the weaker sex and of being the source of all trouble simply because it is believed that Eve had fallen to temptation as part of the original sin.

However that is not how Koran presents the story or Eve for that matter. In the Holy Koran, both Adam and Eve are assigned guilt equally. It is said that they were both tempted by the Devil to eat from the tree and they both fell victim to temptation at the same time without one being guiltier than other.

2- Role of God

In Genesis version of the story, God gives Adam and Eve advice regarding the forbidden tree as they are told not to eat from that tree. In Koran on the other hand, they are told not to go even near the tree which appears to much stronger and better piece of advice because it sounds like a stronger warning than to simply ask them not to eat from the tree.

The biggest problem with the Genesis version is portrayal of God in a weak light. We learn from Genesis that God was roaming in the garden and had to call out for Adam and Eve while they were hiding behind the trees. However in the Koran, God is instrinctively aware of what Adam and Eve had done and there is no calling out and looking around for them because God knows where they are.

We have always been told that God is aware of what we are going through. He is looking out for us. But how would He look out for us if He doesn't know where we are. Genesis thus sends a wrong message to the people while Koran doesn't make that mistake and shows God as the strong One that He truly is.